Although Nan Xinlan's reputation was thoroughly ruined, she truly remained chaste. As for Tie Mingzhu, Wang Chong could pat his chest and swear she was completely pure.
After all, he had been the one to capture her, tie her up, and set her free, without anyone else laying a hand on her in between.
Wang Chong chuckled softly. "Don't let your imagination run wild."
Yu Zao squared her small chest slightly and said, "There is no official mistress in the residence yet, so Yu Zao must take charge of running the household for you, Young Master. In the future, when Young Master soars like a hidden dragon leaping from the abyss or a phoenix flying into the nine heavens, the household must be kept clean, decent, and orderly."
Wang Chong gave a short laugh. "Go and fetch me some paper and brushes."
Yu Zao hurried off to make preparations. Accustomed to serving as Su Luoyan's maid, she was completely in her element in this residence.
Within moments, she brought back a set of the four treasures of the study. They were spare supplies belonging to Su Luoyan. The inkstone was a renowned Taizhou inkstone crafted by the famous master Sun Bu'er. The brushes were Huzhou brushes made with soft lamb tail hairs, crafted by the Guan family of Huzhou—a legendary lineage of brushmakers and the foremost family of their craft in the Central Plains. The ink was the finest Spiritual Point Ink from the capital's Wuyou Chamber. The paper was slightly inferior, as Su Luoyan practiced calligraphy and painting daily and had just run out of the paper she brought with her, so this had been purchased temporarily in Pengshan County. She had already decided she no longer needed it and planned to give it away upon departing, so when Yu Zao went to ask, Su Luoyan generously gave her the whole lot.
Though Wang Chong had no deep knowledge of stationery, seeing the set Yu Zao brought back, he could not help but admire how exquisite every piece was.
He had Yu Zao grind the ink, then began transcribing the Withered Chan technique and the mental mnemonic for the Diamond Prajna Palm. He intended to compile a Wang Clan Martial Canon to pass down to future generations. He certainly did not want to end up like a certain hero surnamed Guo—an unparalleled master under heaven who took a bellyful of supreme martial arts into his coffin, passing none of it to his sons, daughters, or disciples. That hero's daughter had to establish a sect using fragments of Shaolin scriptures and taught martial arts she created herself; his grand-disciples' generation could not even master a complete palm technique, and their descendants were wiped out by a second- or third-rate figure, utterly disgraced to a shocking degree. By contrast, an expert surnamed Hu had preserved his family saber canon impeccably through the generations, keeping their martial legacy alive for more than a dozen lines.
To make it easier for his descendants to understand, Wang Chong attached several illustrations to each stance. For the figure, he used Boa Hancock. To simplify drawing, he even omitted the elaborate garments, letting the Pirate Empress demonstrate the martial arts in her barefoot, long-legged, dominant persona.
The little maid Yu Zao blushed furiously as she watched, constantly glancing down at her own legs. While she considered herself quite pretty, as an ordinary human she certainly could not grow the impossibly long legs of a two-dimensional character. She felt rather regretful yet somewhat unconvinced, thinking to herself, *How could anyone in this world possibly look like that?*
Each time Wang Chong finished a page, he channeled his internal force to dry the ink. Once he finished both manuals, he said to Yu Zao, "These two books have an extraordinary origin and can serve as our family martial canon. Keep them safe for me, and when you have free time, make a few more copies."
Blushing, Yu Zao took the manuals, feeling a faint sweetness in her heart. For Wang Chong to entrust such important items to her made the young maid feel that her standing was truly exceptional.
Early the next morning, Li Qingge hurried back and found Wang Chong. "Regarding the White Chrysanthemum cases, I have already solved nine of them. In all nine, the evidence was conclusive, witnesses were present, the facts were clear, and the culprits have been brought to justice. There are fourteen more that have yet to be resolved..."
At this point, Li Qingge looked somewhat abashed and said, "I have received a summons requiring me to go protect the Prince of Yan. Thoroughly investigating the remaining White Chrysanthemum cases can only be entrusted to you, Brother Wang."
Wang Chong was instantly startled and cried out, "I am a mere commoner. How could I handle such a major case?"
Li Qingge's expression turned quite peculiar. "I originally intended to secure an eighth-rank post for you, Brother Wang. But after submitting the report, it is said that the Prince of Yan personally issued an order appointing you as the Director of the Tongzhou Department of the Ministry of Justice, a substantive sixth-rank post, concurrently serving as the Chief Constable of the Sixteen Prefectures of Tongzhou, in overall charge of the White Chrysanthemum case."
Wang Chong was even more shocked. He thought, *I have no connection to this son of the Heavenly Empress. This has got to be a sign that I'm being set up as a scapegoat!* But on second thought: *As a transmigrator, what scapegoat do I fear? Better to seize the real benefits first. Who knows what might change down the road? If nothing goes wrong, I might even use this opportunity to rise straight to the top!* Just as he was about to accept, Li Qingge added another remark: "This directorship is of a military rank."
Wang Chong understood at once. In the current dynasty, civil officials held sway over the military, and military commanders were always subordinate to civil officials. It was just like the Qing dynasty, where a provincial military commander of the second-highest grade was still subordinate to a provincial governor of the second rank. Military officials of the sixth or seventh rank were worth even less. Li Qingge had likely intended to recommend him for a civil post of the eighth rank; changing it to a military post, even elevated to the sixth rank, meant it was hardly an exalted office.
He had learned this general knowledge from Qin Han. Qin Han held the substantive fifth-rank title of Left Martial Guard commandant, which sounded quite high, but was actually a sinecure, which was why he could run around hunting the White Chrysanthemum and mingling with people of the jianghu.
Feeling slightly disappointed, Wang Chong asked, "What happened to the original director?"
A Director of the Ministry of Justice's Tongzhou Department oversaw the penal administration of an entire province; the post could never have been vacant. For Wang Chong to take office, the predecessor must have gone somewhere.
Li Qingge said calmly, "Of the nine cases that have been solved, four were committed by your predecessor working hand in glove with the Chief Constable of the Sixteen Prefectures of Tongzhou. Both have now been thrown into the magistrate's prison and will be escorted to the capital for interrogation."
Wang Chong was stunned beyond measure. He thought, *These officials certainly know how to play dirty! They even dared to impersonate the White Chrysanthemum?*
Li Qingge recited four case files, his expression turning slightly sorrowful as he said, "In these four cases, the violated women met gruesome ends, their meridians and bones snapped by heavy-handed techniques. The culprits behaved worse than beasts. I cannot bear to speak more of it; read them yourself."
Wang Chong remembered these files distinctly. One of them involved Mo Yuncong of Wudang, and the victim had been named Xiang Xiang—a courtesan of the highest order who sold her artistry, not her body. Her body bore twenty-eight injuries, and she had endured days of torment before dying in agony. Wang Chong remembered it with particular clarity and could not help but curse, "Those two animals are truly subhuman."
Li Qingge sighed. "The law of the state shows no mercy; they will certainly face the executioner's blade after autumn."
"I can only entrust this matter to you, Brother Wang. I would not rest easy with anyone else. As you know, how could anyone with supreme martial arts ever become a constable? Against a criminal with skills as formidable as the White Chrysanthemum, one cannot capture him without extraordinary martial prowess."
Wang Chong could only cup his hands and reply, "I will not fail your trust, Divine Constable Li."
The White Chrysanthemum case had already stirred widespread public fury. Originally, having Sun Yanqi take the fall seemed like a happy resolution for everyone, but who could have expected a Tie Mole to pop up? Still, Li Qingge was truly remarkable to unravel the threads within such a convoluted web, unearthing other origins and arresting the Director of the Tongzhou Department along with the Chief Constable of the Sixteen Prefectures. It was genuinely admirable.
After giving a few instructions, Li Qingge lowered his voice and said, "Originally, I had you impersonate Ma You, the chief constable of Songcheng, merely to conceal your identity. He was thrown into prison for another matter, and the case was rather unjust. I had intended to release him a bit later to avoid blowing your cover. Yet who could have expected that after he was thrown into jail, someone assumed he was doomed and extorted money from him? Ma You surrendered most of his family wealth, but the extorter still refused to let him go, which threw him into a panic."
"Ma You has been a chief constable for years and knows countless secrets. Rather than making wild accusations, he brought up several cases pointing directly at his two superiors. He originally thought those two would protect him, but I caught the flaw and pried the breach open through him."
...Ma You: *Giving me extra scenes again...*
...Prince of Yan: *Tell me, as the Prince of Yan, does it make sense if I don't rebel?...*
...Wang Chong: *You son of a bitch...*
Chapter 49